Buy, then apply for Pensionado or wait?

[RICH G.]

Our ultimate plan is to:

1. buy property in Panama;
2. apply for Pensionado Program; and
3. move to Panama

With that said, is there a “best order” to do these things? We are still about 3 – 5 years out from retiring, but would like to purchase the property now, just not sure if it makes better sense to wait.

Thanks.

[COUNTRY EXPERT- JESSICA RAMESCH]

Dear Sir or Ma’am,

Thanks for posting. There’s no right or wrong here. Real estate prices could rise or fall between now and then, just as the government could enact changes to the Pensionado Program, making it easier or more difficult to apply. That said Panama has a history of stability in that regard (the program hasn’t changed much in the past decade).

You do not have to be a resident to buy property here, as you probably already know.

Perhaps you should weigh the pros and cons and discuss with a Panama attorney and a real estate specialist. (Pro: property prices may be lower now than in the future. Con, if you buy a home now and are not living here yet, you may have to pay someone to care for it/manage it for you…and so on). We have contacts listed in the rolodex section of this website, but just in case, here they are:

The Law Offices of Rainelda Mata-Kelly
Suite 406-407, Tower B, Torres de las Americas
Punta Pacifica, Panama City, Panama
Local tel: +(507) 216-9299
From the U.S. or Canada tel: (011 507) 216-9299
Email: rmk@mata-kelly.com
Website: http://www.mata-kelly.com

Real estate:

Pathfinder International Real Estate
info@pathfinderinternational.net
Website: http://www.pathfinderinternational.net

For the Pensionado you must draw a pension of at least $1,000 per month to qualify. You are not required to buy real estate in Panama to qualify.

There is one exception to the $1,000 pension requirement, however. You can apply for residence with a lower pension—at least $750—if you have invested at least $100,000 in property in Panama. If your pension is over $1000 a month then you don’t need to worry about this.

You may pool your pension with your spouse’s to meet the minimum pension requirement, provided you’ll be applying together. If you include a spouse or dependents on your application, you must show an additional pension amount of $250 per dependent. If you are unable to do so, there is one alternative: you can set up a Panama bank account to hold a certain amount of funds per dependent (currently approximately $2,000 per dependent, subject to change).

Please verify all this with your Panama immigration attorney.

I hope this information helps. If you have more questions don’t hesitate to ask.

Best,

Jessica

[Author]

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